1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a computer system having an automatic answering device and a method for automatically answering and providing an audio response message to a caller, in response to an incoming telephone call by the caller during a time that the computer system is in a hibernation state.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, in computer design technologies, low-power designs have been required as well as high-performance designs. One of the typical computer systems having power saving features is the so called hibernation system. When such a system is not operated for a predetermined time period, the system goes into a suspend mode such that the operating conditions of the system are stored in a nonvolatile storage device, such as a hard disk drive, and then the entire system is substantially powered off for the sake of reducing power consumption. During this suspend mode, the computer system saves the operating conditions until the system becomes active by turning the power switch on. When the system awakes from the hibernation state, namely, when the system is powered on again, the system resumes operation according to the saved operating conditions so as to go back into the previous state, i.e., the normal state.
Being powered off owing to the abrupt interruption of electric power, the hibernation system also saves the contents of all devices in the hard disk drive by means of a built-in battery or a basic uninterruptable power supply (UPS), and then turns off. If the system is powered on again, the system resumes operation and returns to the previous state.
There has been a recent trend of remotely controlling a computer system or computer-controlled machine, such as an electric home application, by using a modem. As is well known, the modem is connected between the computer system and a telephone network, and converts a first type of signal, for example, a digital signal from the system into a second type of signal, for example, an analog signal suitable for the telephone network, and vice versa.
However, when the system is in the hibernation state and an incoming call is received, it takes one or more minutes for the system to awake out of the hibernation state and go back to the normal state. Thus, there is a possibility that a caller, having no understanding of the system, may hang up because the system does not immediately respond to his call.
The patent to Tanaka et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,813,069, entitled Computer System Having Automatic Answering telephone function, discloses a system including a main control unit, a telephone control unit, a voice information storage medium, a program unit for automatically answering and processing telephone calls, a program unit for performing data processing, and a mode setting circuit for setting the automatic telephone answering and the data processing to be performed.
As shown in FIG. 1 of Tanaka et al., a computer system is shown having an automatic answering function in which a message recorded on cassette tape is automatically played back to a caller and a telephone message from the caller recorded on the cassette tape. Tanaka et al. however does not teach or suggest the recited computer system having a modem and/or an automatic answering device capable of storing and reading out digital message data as in the present invention.
The following additional patents each disclose features in common with the present invention but are not as pertinent as the Tanaka et al. patent discussed above: U.S. Pat. No. 5,043,721 to May, entitled Paging Accessory For Portable Information/Computing Devices, U.S. Pat. No. 4,847,892 to Shelley, entitled Dial-In data Transmission System With Standby Capability, U.S. Pat. No. 5,577,106 to Tanaka et al., entitled Communication Apparatus For Use With Public Telephone Network, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,530,879 to Crump et al, entitled Computer System Having Power Management Processor For Switching Power Supply Form One State To Another Responsive To A Closure Of A Switch, A Detected Ring Or An Expiration Of A Timer.